Narnia: Symbolism

BUMP

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is basically an allegory of the basic Christian gospel, as I understand it. I believe that the witch represents the devil, or evil in some form, and that winter represents the ongoing state of sin, evil, and brokenness in the world. Aslan's death represents the death of Jesus on the cross and atonement for sin, and the children simply represent people on earth, who go from a natural world into a supernatural world. I believe C.S. Lewis uses children because of the Bible verse stating that anyone who would come to Jesus must be like a little child. I'm pretty sure this is correct, but would like to hear from others as well.

bump

The Witch (Jadis) represents the evil that enters the world just after Creation. This is explained (or it at least happens if not explained) in the prequel, "The Magician's Nephew."

the prequel to the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe is, funnily enough, the seventh book of the series. it does answer a lot of questions.

zepdog1500 wrote:

the prequel to the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe is, funnily enough, the seventh book of the series. it does answer a lot of questions.

I saw the series in a bookstore, and the #$)(#@)! publishers moved "The Magician's Nephew" to Book 1. Idiots.

Note that Lewis never said a thing about the Chronicles and their allegorical meaning. At least, that's what NPR said....

i just bought one of those all-7-books-in-one-volume thingies and yeah they placed "magician's nephew" at the front. The book stated that it was the last in the series to be published but the book was arranged in the order that the chronicles happen. So that hopefully explains what it means.

The Mayor

Kind of like the Star Wars Episode I being the fourth one released...I remember the Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe being the first one I read. There was also a video series released some time ago, but it wasn't a big budget production.

CS Lewis was a devote Christian in England, main works in the 1940s wiht the influence WWII and Hitler, a great philosopher, and chained smoked. Along with JR Tolkien another devote Christian in England, these two brought the Bible brought to life in a fun and simple way to explain its meaning through their allegorical masterpieces. CS Lewis adult literature is intelligent, complex and challenges people. These two men had amazing philosophical discussions and wanted to bring Christianity to life in ways people could apply to every day issues we will face. If you enjoy philosophy and want to read the some of the best material written read his books like Mere Christianity, Screwtape Letters, or A Great Divorce. It will change how Christians and Non Christians view the world. It is brilliant!

Just my thoughts here, but I saw the boy Edmund as like a Judas character for betraying Aslan and his siblings. However, that's as far as it goes because he repents, unlike Judas.

It was always winter, "but never Christmas", represents sin's reign before Christ came.

The one representation I think is the most poignant is the stone table. The stone table represents the law, as given by Moses. The law only convicts of sin and never saves. This is where Aslan lays down his life - to satisfy the law's requirement of bloodshed for Edmund's sin. When Aslan died and rose again the table was broken. Similar to when the Hebrew temple veil was torn and allowed man to have a personal relationship to God.

Cool thread, by the way.

I read those books dozens of times when I was a kid. But I didn't read anything into them, even though I was dragged to church 70+ times a year and actually paid attention while I was there. The phrase from the book that sticks in my mind is "always winter but never Christmas". There's no doubt the symbolism was intentional.

I'm pulling this one out of my ass, and my memory is probably faulty, but I recall a sermon one week where the Rev. referred to a CS Lewis story on the nature of hell. A group of people who lived in a cold, dark, dreary, polluted city (Manchester is the prototype, but Toledo is a great stand-in) got to go on a bus trip out to the country where it was warm and sunny and wonderful. They played and had a picnic and thoroughly enjoyed themselves, but then got back on the bus and went back to their same terrible city. The point was hell (the city) and heaven (the country) are places on earth, or states of mind. We accept living in hell like we have no other choice; we are wage slaves because we worship money and possessions, we are mean and impersonal, we ignore the commandments to love God and each other. We DO have the choice to live a heavenly life, but we are so tied into one way of thinking that we can't escape it. If this is an accurate representation of the story and its meaning, then "always winter and never Christmas" means we live in a world of death without celebrating life and love. In any case, that's the meaning I take from it.

jsquire,

The story you are speaking of is very loosely based on C.S. Lewis's book "The Great Divorce", another fine read.

Does anyone know what the lamp post symbolized in the film?

thanks! God bless, Kim

Did anyone else think that the movie, not the story behind it, but the actual direction and production of the movie, was somewhat lacking? Or maybe Peter Jackson has ruined fantasy movies forever.

Kim wrote:

Does anyone know what the lamp post symbolized in the film?

I was wondering the same thing.

I saw the movie last weekend and if you have even a passing familiarty with basic Christianity the movie is filled with it.

Then the question should be asked, to what extent do the various characters, objects, etc. relate as Christian symbols. There is a point, mind you, when you've delved too far and overstretched the author's aims.

Another great writer who influenced Lewis was G. K. Chesterton, whose greatest works were Heretics and Orthodoxy. Any of his fans on here?

The lamp post, if you remember, was brought there by the White Witch as a weapon at the very birth of Narnia. Aslan sang it into a fully working and possibly living lamp post as he was singing the rest of Narnia into existence. The lamp post could be a reminder of how God takes things that we meant for evil or things that are unexpected and turns them into something good. It that light, it could be somewhat symbolic that it is one of the first things Lucy sees in Narnia.

"The light is shining in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it"